Improved orthotic shell for orthopedic sole insert

ABSTRACT

An orthopedic insert is disclosed that comprises an orthotic shell and a plurality of cuts made about at least a portion of the periphery of the orthotic shell. The orthotic shell typically comprises an arch portion made of a semi-flexible material. As a patient&#39;s weight is applied to the insert, and particularly the orthotic shell, the cuts localize the flexing in the arch portion as a result of the downward force being applied by the patient, thus reducing pressures along the orthotic edges and diminished muscle strain.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to orthopedic inserts for a shoe.

The human foot is a unique structure that can be very flexible or very rigid when a person walks depending upon the internal locking and unlocking mechanism of the bones and joints in the person's foot.

This mechanism will not function properly if the bones and joints of the person's foot and ankle are in abnormal alignment. If such an abnormal alignment is present, muscles in the lower extremities will be required to work harder in an effort to compensate. As a consequence, these muscles will fatigue quicker. Once muscles fatigue, the person will experience pain and discomfort because the muscles can no longer compensate for the abnormal alignment of the foot and ankle.

There have been many developments in the prior art to correct this problem and avoid invasive surgery. Shoe-inserts have been developed which can be positioned between the bottom or plantar aspect of a person's foot and the shoe. The function of the custom sole shoe-insert, also known as orthotics, is to correct and support the bones and joints to achieve as close as practicable a normal foot alignment. The customized insert will cause a redistribution of the pressure exerted by a person's body weight upon the plantar aspect of the foot so that the person can walk with greater stability and in more comfort.

A typical method in the prior art is to make a customized insert based upon a plaster cast made of the foot in the podiatrist's office. Any required modifications to this customized insert would thereafter be made according to the specific needs of the patient as determined by the attending podiatrist. This type of procedure is expensive, and requires a trial and error process to obtain the final product. Thus, a substantial amount of time is typically required between the initial plaster cast and the final product; sometimes on the order of weeks.

Numerous trips to the attending podiatrist's office are typically required. Even then it is still possible that a perfect custom fit to for the particular patient can never be achieved.

When the patient is fitted with a customized insert, the patient will exert a downward force upon the insert. If the arch of the insert is designed too high, a pressure point will develop near the top of the arch which will cause the wearer pain. If the arch is designed too flat, more weight will be concentrated over a larger area of the arch and will cause the non-arch area of the insert to deform to an extent sufficient to cause discomfort and pain.

As is typical, the patient will visit the podiatrist and try on the orthopedic insert for comfort. Usually, there are particular portions that give the patient discomfort. Because orthopedic arches are typically constructed of a semi-flexible material, the arch, in response to a patient's weight being applied thereon, would flex, not simply downward under the area weight is applied, but also upward at some other area of the insert. The upward flex or wave, is believed to be the cause of secondary discomfort, a discomfort the patient tells the podiatrist along with the primary cause of discomfort.

Accordingly, even after numerous trial and error fittings the patient, although suffering less, may never be able to completely be pain-free using a custom insert.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

My invention is a customized orthopedic insert that is designed to avoid secondary flexing and limit flexing to a local area of the insert that is adjacent to the downward force applied by the patient's foot.

As is typical in their construction, orthopedic inserts are comprised of an orthotic shell that is created from a negative cast of the patient's foot. This orthotic shell can be made of various materials well known in the art that provide an acceptable degree of flex. Preferably, materials suitable for an orthotic shell include, appropriate plastic material as well as fiberglass and durable metals sufficiently thin to become flexible.

My invention is to include a plurality of notches or cuts about a portion of the periphery of the orthotic shell. The primary purpose of these plurality of cuts is to allow a particular area of the orthotic shell to flex while not causing a secondary flex elsewhere on the shell. Preferably, the depth of the cut (i.e. measured from the periphery across to the other peripheral side), is between 15-25% of the width of the orthotic shell. A deeper or shallower notch may be required as determined by the attending podiatrist. However, it should be noted that notches should not be so deep or so multiple as to cause the purpose of the orthotic shell, structural support for the foot, to be compromised.

Although cuts can be fabricated about the entire periphery of the orthotic shell, preferably, the cuts are present along the outer periphery of the arch area, more specifically termed the outside lateral flange and the inside medial flange of the orthotic shell.

As with most orthopedic inserts, a cushion material is used to stabilize the plantar fill underneath the arch portion of the orthotic shell. Stabilizing the plantar fill permits increased flexibility with continued functional control. For the customized embodiment, the thickness of the plantar fill will be determined by the podiatrist. However, a non-customized embodiment can be made wherein a customer purchases one of a variety of generic sizes which then include more than one plantar fill selections. Thereby, the thickness of the plantar fill can be increased or decreased to achieve the most comfort to the wearer. Additionally, although the orthotic shell is typically used with a stabilizing plantar fill, patients of lower weight may not require the use of a plantar fill.

When the patient applies weight upon his customized orthopedic insert made according to my invention, the cuts will substantially eliminate any undesired secondary flex of the orthotic shell that will cause discomfort. As a result, the patient will notice reduced pressures along the orthotic edges, diminished muscle strain, as well as the elimination of the burning/friction sensation that patients experience using other types of orthotics.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of one embodiment of my orthopedic insert.

FIG. 2 is a side view of an arch typical in the prior art that has a downward force being applied.

FIG. 3 is a side view of my orthopedic arch that has a downward force being applied.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

FIG. 1 is an exploded view of my orthopedic insert 10. This is typically the design which a patient will receive. Orthopedic insert 10 comprises a bottom layer 12, heel cushion 14, forward cushion portion 16, orthotic shell 18 and a top cushion layer 20. Items 12, 14, 16 and 20 are typical in the prior art. It is to be noted that there may be variations to this design which will not detract from the purpose of my inventive design of the orthotic shell 18.

FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 are illustrations representing the effects of a downward force “A” upon an orthotic shell. FIG. 2 represents a prior art shell 18p without peripheral cuts the effect of which is a flattening of the overall arch; i.e. the heel and forward portions tend to flex upward as represented by the dashed lines.

FIG. 3 is a representation of the effect when a downward force “A” is applied to an orthotic shell 18 made according to my invention using cuts 22. The semi-flexible orthotic shell flexes only in a localized area with the heel and forward portions substantially maintaining its original shape. It is to be noted that the downward force and its effect on the orthotic shells depicted in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 are representations only and the actual flex caused by a patient could be different.

My orthotic shell 18 includes a plurality of cuts 22. In the most preferred embodiment, orthotic shell 18 is limited to providing support to the arch portion of a patient's foot with the plurality of cuts 22 present along the medial and lateral flanges of the orthotic shell. However, the orthotic shell can be fabricated for any portion of a patient's sole, even the entire sole. Further, the plurality of cuts 22 do not have to be limited to the flanges of the orthotic shell and can be fabricated about the entire periphery of the orthotic shell.

Once a patient has a cast taken of his foot and an orthotic shell 18 is created from the mold, cuts 22 are fabricated along the lateral and medial flanges of the shell. The purpose of cuts 22 is to permit the portion of the shell experiencing a specific downward force to flex and localize the effect of the specific downward force so that other areas of the shell will not tend to flex as a result of the specific downward force.

Cuts 22 are substantially spaced apart from one another so that the integrity of orthotic shell 18 is maintained. In other words, too many cuts may render the purpose of the arch, i.e. support, ineffective. The number of cuts to use and its distribution about the periphery is dependent upon the particular patient's foot, and the depth of each notch. Preferably, each notch or cut should be no more than ¼ of the orthotic's overall width and most ⅕ to ⅛ of the width.

As is well known in the art constructing orthopedic inserts, once the orthotic shell 18 is fabricated, the insert will be assembled in a manner including the parts shown in FIG. 1. 

1. An orthotic shell customized for a patient's foot comprising: an orthotic shell fabricated from a negative cast of a patient's foot, said shell having a top side, a bottom side, a lateral side and a medial side; said orthotic shell having a contoured arch and a plurality of cuts spaced about the lateral and medial sides of the orthotic shell; and, each of said cuts extending inward.
 2. The orthotic shell of claim 1 where said insert is constructed of a semi-flexible material.
 3. The orthotic shell of claim 1 where said cuts extend inward no more than 25% of its respective width.
 4. The orthotic shell of claim 1 where said notches extend inward no more than 20% of its respective width.
 5. An orthotic shell customized for a patient's foot comprising: an orthotic shell fabricated from a negative cast of a patient's foot having a top side, a bottom side, a lateral side and a medial side; said insert having a contoured arch and a plurality of cuts spaced about the periphery of said insert; and, each of said notches extending inward from said periphery.
 6. The orthotic shell of claim 5 where said insert is constructed of a semi-flexible material.
 7. The orthotic shell of claim 5 where said cuts extend inward no more than 25% of its respective width.
 8. An orthopedic insert customized for a patient, the insert having an orthotic shell disposed between a cushioned top layer and a cushioned bottom layer where the bottom layer provides stability of the plantar fill, the improvement comprising: a plurality of cuts made along at least a portion of the periphery of said orthotic shell, each of said plurality of cuts extending inward from said periphery.
 9. The orthopedic insert of claim 8 where said at least a portion of the periphery is at least a portion of the lateral side of said orthotic shell.
 10. The orthopedic insert of claim 8 where said at least a portion of the periphery is at least a portion of the medial side of said orthotic shell.
 11. The orthopedic insert of claim 8 where said at least a portion of the periphery is at least a portion of the lateral side of said orthotic shell and a portion of the medial side of said orthotic shell.
 12. The orthopedic insert of claim 8 where said at least a portion of the periphery includes the entire periphery of said orthotic shell. 